Welcome
Welcome
Welcome
You are very welcome to browse through this page.
It is our fervent prayer that it will help you in your discernment.
If you feel that you would like to explore further, feel free to contact us either by writing or email.
A suitable date will be arranged for your visit.
Following this visit, if you feel you would like to discern further and we feel that you could have a calling to a life of Eucharistic Adoration, a “live- in” experience can be arranged.
The Process of Becoming a Nun
Initial Requirements:
We consider women on an individual basis.
We encourage women to finish their education first.
Some work experience is also very desirable.
Other Requirements Include:
A desire to give oneself totally to God.
A spirit of prayer with a special love for Eucharistic Adoration.
Good mental and physical health.
An ability to be flexible.
An ability to get along well with other people.
A basic maturity and positive attitude towards life.
Freedom from debt or other legal obligations.
The process of entering a monastery is slow, gradual and prayerful, usually happening through the following steps:
Firstly, you are welcome to contact us to arrange a visit, where we will try and help you in your discernment and to learn more about a Poor Clare's life.
The next step is usually a stay in the retreat house, participating in all the liturgies and prayers of the community and getting to know each other better.
If you seriously desire to seek further, and we feel that you could have a vocation, you may ask to come inside the monastery for a period of time: some weeks or possibly a few months. This is called a 'live-in'.
After the 'live-in' and if there is an indication on both sides (the community and you) that God may possibly be calling you to the life, you request officially to enter the monastery.
At this stage before you are admitted as a postulant, you are required to have a medical and a vocational assessment.
Postulancy
This is a time of transition from lay life to the life proper to the novitiate. Postulancy is not a stage of religious life but a preliminary probation during which you wear secular dress. It is a time for prayerful discernment, for seeking to discover if God is calling you to give your whole self in joyous and wholehearted service to God and the Church within this Franciscan family. At the completion of the year, a decision must be made whether or not to continue. Two months before the end of the year, you return home for two weeks. Then if you still desire to continue, you ask to be received into the Novitiate as a Poor Clare novice and you move to the next stage along your journey.
Initiation to the Religious life as a Poor Clare Novice
This is when living in our Order begins. During a lovely simple ceremony you leave aside your secular clothing and are clothed in the Franciscan habit with a white veil, cord and sandals. The novitiate lasts two years during which you will become acquainted with the most important requirements of our life and be prepared for the life of perfect love according to the evangelical counsels.
First Profession of Vows
During Mass, the novice pronounces her vows and receives the black veil, having committed herself to following Christ more closely in poverty, chastity, obedience and enclosure. She begins to share more fully in the activities of the community for the following three years, preparing her heart to seal her commitment in solemn vows. It is a time of joyful anticipation.
Solemn Profession of Final Vows:
This Profession is made in public during a solemn Mass. As a symbol that she is consecrated to God as a Bride of Christ, a silver ring is placed on her finger.
It is in giving up everything to follow Christ that she will find everything
her heart desires.
Are you searching for more in your life?
“To women, often dissatisfied with their life and in search of authentic happiness and love, Christ offers his own example and issues the invitation to follow Him. He asks those who hear His voice to give their lives for others. This sacrifice is a source of self-fulfilment and joy, as is seen in the example of those men and women who, leaving all security behind, have not hesitated to risk their lives as missionaries in different parts of the world. It can also be seen in the response of those young people who, prompted by faith, have embraced a vocation to the priesthood or religious life, in order to serve God’s plan of salvation. ”
“Each encounter with Jesus
fills us with JOY, with that deep
joy which only God can give. ...
Do not be afraid to say YES.”
“Do not be afraid to say ‘yes’ to Jesus,
to find your joy in doing His will,
giving yourself completely to the
pursuit of holiness”
Vocations Enquiry Form